3. USE OF SILENCE
EYE CONTACT
TOUCHING
SPACE
PRIVACY
DOS
DON’TS
Saudi Arabia
4. Use of silence
S
Emphasis on tone of voice, use of
silence, facial clues and body language.
Silence is often used for
contemplation.
5. Eye contact
Be aware of the
importance of
good, strong eye
contact!
A man's sincerity
and honour can
be judged by their
ability to look you
in the eye, it also
indicates respect
6. Touching
No touching
between men and
women in public
places.
Decent amount of
touching between
members of the
same gender
during
conversations.
7. Space
Comfort zone:
a little less than an
arms length
People stand close
together and touch
each other while
conversing.
8. Privacy
Never ask a Saudi about his wife!
The Saudi Constitution does not provide for a
right to privacy.
9. Dos
Address your counterparts
with appropriate titles.
Abide by local standards of modesty and dress
appropriately
Maintain strong eye-contact
Do use your right hand for gift giving etc.
10. Don’ts
DON’T appear
loud or overly
animated in public
DON’T rush your
Arabian
counterparts
during business
negotiations
DON’T use the
german ok sign
DON’T assume
during business
meetings that the
person who asks
the most questions
holds the most
responsibility.
11. U S E O F S I L E N C E
C O N V E R S A T I O N A L O V E R L A P S A N D
I N T E R R U P T I O N S
E Y E C O N T A C T
T O U C H I N G
P R I V A C Y
D O S
D O N ' T S
Japan
16. Dos and don’ts
- Do take things slowly
- Do take care of your posture.
- Do take business cards with you.
- Don’t blow your noise noisily
- Don’t be late.
- Don’t hog the conversation.
17. U S E O F S I L E N C E
C O N V E R S A T I O N A L O V E R L A P S A N D
I N T E R R U P T I O N S
E Y E C O N T A C T
T O U C H I N G
P R I V A C Y
D O S
D O N ’ T S
Brazil
22. Privacy
Brazilians display their emotions
openly and don’t hold back their
feelings
It’s common to see young people
showing feelings in public places
23. Dos
DO schedule extra time in between meetings
DO expect to spend a lot of time getting to know your Brazilian
business counterparts before any business takes place.
DO accept any food or coffee offered to you
DO make eye contact as this shows you are paying attention,
interested and honest.
24. Don’t
DON’T rush business dealings with your Brazilian
colleagues and avoid pressing for final decisions
DON’T show feelings of frustration or impatience as this
will reflect poorly on you as an individual counterpart.
DON’T publicly criticize your Brazilian counterparts
25. A N Y Q U E S T I O N S ?
Thank you for your attention!
Editor's Notes
Saudi Arabia is considered a very high context culture. This means that the message people are trying to convey often relies heavily on other communicative cues such as body language and eye-contact rather than direct words. In this respect, people make assumptions about what is not said.
In Saudi Arabian culture particular emphasis is placed on tone of voice, the use of silence, facial cues, and body language. It is vital to be aware of these non-verbal aspects of communication in any business setting in order to avoid misunderstandings. For instance, silence is often used for contemplation and you should not feel obliged to speak during these periods.
don’t feel obliged to speak during these periods.
Finally, be aware of the importance of good, strong eye contact. A man's sincerity and honour can be judged by their ability to look you in the eye. This can be somewhat uncomfortable for those from cultures with much weaker eye contact (many Asian countries) but efforts must be made in this area. Indicates respect
There is a decent amount of touching between members of the same gender during conversations. It is common for two men to walk hand in hand in public. This does not have any implication on their sexual preferences; it's just a sign of friendship and closeness.
It also very common for female friends to link arms while walking or talking.
There is no touching between men and women in public places.
People stand close together and touch each other while conversing. It is important not to back away as this would be insulting
Saudi’s tend to feel comfortable standing a little less than an arms length apart from one another. This space is much, much greater between men and women.
The Saudi Constitution does not provide for a right to privacy. The government can, with a court order, search homes, vehicles, places of business and intercept private communications. People living in the kingdom should assume that communications can be seized by the government for evidence in a criminal trial.
Never ask a Saudi about his wife
DO address your Saudi Arabian counterparts with the appropriate titles Doctor, Shaikh (chief), Mohandas (engineer), and Ustadh (professor), followed by his or her first name. If unsure, it is best to get the names and correct form of address of those you will be doing business with before hand. The word "bin" or "ibn" (son of) and “bint” (daughter of) may be present a number of times in a person’s name, as Saudi names are indicators of genealogy.
DO abide by local standards of modesty and dress appropriately. As a sign of respect, it is essential to wear the proper attire during business meetings in Saudi Arabia. For men, conservative business suits are recommended. Women are required to wear high necklines, sleeves at least to the elbow, and preferably long skirts below the knee.
DO maintain strong eye-contact with your Saudi counterparts and expect a closer distance during conversation in both business and social settings. Both forms of communication are ways in which to strengthen trust and show respect in Saudi Arabia.
DON’T appear loud or overly animated in public. This type of behaviour is considered rude and vulgar. It is important to maintain and element of humility and display conservative behaviour at all times.
DON’T rush your Arabian counterparts during business negotiations. Communications occur at a slower pace in Saudi Arabia and patience is often necessary.
DON’T assume during business meetings that the person who asks the most questions holds the most responsibility. In Saudi Arabia this person is considered to be the least respected or least important. The decision maker is more often than not a silent observer. For this reason, if you are in a business meeting, it is advised not to ask all the questions.
According to Islam, the left hand is considered unclean and reserved for personal hygiene. Arabs traditionally use the right hand for all public functions — including shaking hands, eating, drinking and passing objects to another person.
In Saudi Arabia the “OK” gesture is an insult meaning “the evil eye”.
Silence is considered a virtue. If things go quiet when doing business in a meeting then do not panic. Reflection is taking place. Silence may be also be accompanied by the closing of the eyes. Never interrupt or break the silence.
Don't be afraid of silences. Sit tight and wait for something to happen. It's a common Western flaw in the Far East to feel that silences have to be filled. In negotiations, for instance, this normally means that the Westerner ends up conceding something.
Also, it’s important not to make a lot of direct eye contact. Japanese find this uncomfortable. One way to cope with this difficult situation is to look at the eyes and then away or preferably down before looking again. This doesn't mean that you should stare at your shoes. You can look at various places on the face before looking back at the eyes. For example eyebrows, mouth area etc. Try this simple rule: limit eye contact to 25% of the time.
Japanese customarily bow to each other rather than shake hands upon meeting. However, most Japanese accustomed to dealing with foreigners expect to shake hands with them and are rarely embarrassed when a foreigner offers his hand. A frequently used compromise is a handshake accompanied by a slight bow. Japanese do not mind being touched in impersonal situations like a subway car, but they seldom prefer anything more than a handshake in a personal situation.
In general, Japanese society has not been very sensitive to the protection of privacy, which is probably due to the Japanese cultural and social environment.
Society not very sensitive to protection of privacy
Take things slowly. English comprehension may not be as good as it appears. Keep interventions simple and straightforward. The same is true if an interpreter is used. Make your interventions in short, easily translatable burst. Don't use sporting metaphors. If you must make jokes, keep them very simple
Personal posture is important. Sit firmly in chairs at meetings even if they are armchairs. Don't slump, don't cross your legs and do maintain a fairly formal style. Don't blow your nose noisily. Don't drink tea offered to you before your host has indicated that you do so. Shake hands at the beginning and end of meetings. Never be late. Don't overrun the designated period for the meeting unless your interlocutor clearly wants to extend it. Don't hog the conversation.
6. Take business cards with you and have plenty available. They should be printed in Japanese on the reverse.
If you are taking gifts, make sure they are well wrapped, if possible professionally. Tatty wrapping paper is a British disease; as are cheap, tatty gifts. They indicate a discourtesy to the recipient. Do not give the gift until the end of the meeting. Don't be fazed if you have given a gift and not received one. You will have scored a point. Don't open the gift after receiving it; if it's not very good it will embarrass your host. If you open it, your host will also have to open yours and that could embarrass you.
Taking turns to speak is not the rule. People will interrupt a conversation and will speak simultaneously.
It is acceptable to be silent for longer periods when two or more people are together.
Eye contact (but not staring) is important, as a demonstration of sincerity and interest in the conversation and in the person being spoken to.
It is acceptable to touch someone when speaking to them, no matter the gender or the relationship. A touch on the arm or a pat on the back is common in normal conversation.
Touching is common. Kissing on both cheeks is common among family members, relatives, friends and acquaintances
It is acceptable to touch someone when speaking to them
Handshaking, kissing, hugging, patting, embracing and holdings hands are common forms of greeting.
Brazilians tend to get close to each other when a conversation is taking place, no matter what the relationship is between them. Between 30 and 40 cm is an average distance, and this is also true in other situations, such as standing in line, walking in a crowded place, or browsing in a shop.
Brazilians, like their Latin neighbors, are very hot-blooded: they display their emotions openly and don’t hold back their feelings. You won’t have difficulty finding out if someone is happy or frustrated, sad or angry. For example, if a Brazilian is not happy with service at a restaurant, they will complain loud and clear. There is always a good chance of other people getting involved, either agreeing with the complainant, or taking the opposite view.
Affection is often shown between siblings, parents, friends and relatives.
It’s common to see young couples kissing, hugging, and exhibiting passionate behavior in public places (the movies, in stores, restaurants, in the bus, in parks, etc.) One reason for this: it is not common for young, single people to have an apartment of their own, so privacy is hard to come by.
DO schedule extra time in between meetings to allow for any additional time needed since they are often delayed or cancelled without warning. As a foreigner, try to always be on time however as this will be expected of you.
DO expect to spend a lot of time getting to know your Brazilian business counterparts before any business takes place.
DO make eye contact as this shows you are paying attention, interested and honest.
DO accept any food or coffee offered to you. Saying no can be seen as insulting.
DON’T rush business dealings with your Brazilian colleagues and avoid pressing for final decisions
DON’T show feelings of frustration or impatience as this will reflect poorly on you as an individual. Brazilians pride themselves on their ability to be in control, so acting in a similar fashion will improve your relationship and interactions with your Brazilian
counterparts.
DON’T bring up topics of conversation such as crime, corruption or deforestation as these are sensitive issues at the moment.
DON’T publicly criticise your Brazilian counterparts. If you need to tell them something negative, do so in private so they do not lose face or their pride in front of others.
